Bronx Personal Injury & Real Estate Blog

Q: Is New York City to blame for a truck accident due to conditions on a milled and unpaved road?

A Saturday morning family drive on Bruckner Boulevard went horribly awry when a sanitation truck hit and crushed the family’s sedan, killing one of the four occupants and leaving the remaining three injured.

The fatality was a three-year-old girl on her way to dance class with her parents and grandmother. The girl was pronounced dead at the hospital and the others sustained non-life-threatening injuries. The privately-owned sanitation truck driver was not criminally charged.

In a personal injury lawsuit, victims of the negligent or reckless actions or in actions of another person or company may be entitled to compensatory damages if they can prove the defendant was negligent and that the negligence caused their injury. If liability is established, victims may recover current and future medical expenses, lost income, property damage, pain and suffering, and more depending on the circumstances of each case.

In a wrongful death case, the victim dies as a result of their injuries. In that instance, certain close surviving relatives – – often parents, spouses, or children of the victim – – may be entitled to compensation as well. The burden of establishing the defendant’s negligence or recklessness and liability for the death is the same as it would be in a personal injury suit. Wrongful death cases are complex, and require the assistance of a skilled attorney to determine which relatives would be entitled to sue and what damages they would be eligible to receive since they are determined on a case-by-case basis.

In the case at hand, the family sedan reportedly "swerved to avoid a raised metal sewer cap" on a recently- milled portion of Bruckner Boulevard that was "uneven and bumpy" and was hit in the rear and side by the sanitation truck, crushing the portion of the car where the little girl was strapped into her car seat.

Was it the condition of the road, the swerving of the sedan, the failure to stop by the sanitation truck-- or a combination of these factors-- that caused or contributed to the accident? Having a personal injury attorney involved as soon as possible after any accident may be helpful as the accident investigation unfolds.

If you or a loved one has been injured or a loved one has been killed in a car accident or any other accident, The Goldstein Law Firm in Bronx, New York can help. We can't undo the accident, but we can help reduce the financial burden caused by your tragic and unexpected loss. Call us today at 718-239-0239 for a free consultation. We represent clients throughout New York City as well as those injured while visiting New York.